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FOMO (also known as the Fear Of Missing Out) is an all too real feeling, especially in this age of social media. People post pictures from their exciting nights out on the town all over Facebook and instagram. Your friends and associates tweet about how much they love their new job. With all of the status updates and snapchats it’s hard not to see how much everyone else is enjoying their lives. Anyone is able to paint a picture of themselves as this person who seems to have their life completely together, and when they do this, sometimes you can’t help but wonder if you’re missing out on something. You may start to think that you should be living a life that’s just as fun and exciting as the person who posts all of their envy-inducing pictures to instagram, but that’s their life positive thinker, not yours.

And the truth of the matter is that most of us only tend to share the good parts about our lives on social media. You hardly ever see anybody posting a picture of an outfit that they look just ok in. You rarely read a status update where somebody says that they kind of like the job that they’re at. And you can probably count on one hand the number of times you’ve been on one of your social media accounts and read about somebody having a mediocre weekend. You never see these kinds of things. What you just so happen to see is the exact opposite. Nobody wants to highlight their less than exciting lives, so the only time we feel the urge to share tidbits and snippets from our lives is when we have something great to share. And when you only see the good in somebody else’s life you also may start to think that they are only experiencing good things, but even that insta-famous guy or gal that you’re following has a life where things don’t go their way 100% of the time. Their life is not perfect even though it may seem like it is through their perfectly constructed life that they portray through social media.

It’s also quite possible that this life that they are displaying to the world may not actually be the life that they want to live. Just because somebody is smiling from ear to ear in their Facebook profile picture at some hot party in an upscale part of town doesn’t mean that they are enjoying that party as much as they are letting on. It’s very possible that they are, but it’s equally as possible that they are just putting on a show that their instagram followers and Facebook friends will like. Advancements in technology are a wonderful thing. With it, we are able to achieve things like life-saving medical procedures and ways to make our planet more sustainable, but with it we also have a few things that aren’t so great. Unfortunately, with this wave of connectedness that things like Instagram and Twitter bring us, we’ve started to move towards a world where are worth seems to hinge upon how many likes our photos get and how many re-tweets we receive. We want to be liked and our social media accounts make it possible for people to tell us that they like what we’re doing almost instantaneously, which can seem like a good thing. However when you don’t get that like that you’re craving, you may start to think a little bit less of yourself, but, believe it or not, you are more than just what you display on your social media accounts.

If you’re happy with where your life is at positive thinker, then forget about FOMO. You’re not missing out on anything because you’re living the life that you want to live. It may not be as glamorous or exciting as what other people portray, but as long as you’re out there doing what you love to do then that’s all that should really matter. True happiness comes when whatever is on the inside matches what is on the outside. If spending your Saturday nights curled up by the fireplace with your favorite novel is going to make you happy then do that. Don’t try and live a life that’s full of glamour and parties just so that other people can think that you have an amazing life. Being authentic to who you are is what you should aim for positive thinker. Don’t worry about what other people are doing; worry about what you’re doing, and try to live a life that you’re going to be happy with.

Remember, “Create a life that feels good on the inside, not one that just looks good on the outside.”

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I have a serious question that I want you to think about positive thinkers…

How happy are you with how your life is going?

If your answer to this question is that I’m pretty happy with how my life is going or some variation of this answer then good for you! Keep on doing whatever it is that you’re doing that’s making you feel that way. For those of you who aren’t too happy with how your life is going, this next part is for you.

People can live a hundred years and end up not truly living a single day of those hundred years. If you’re wondering how this can be true, then ponder this…

What’s the point in living a hundred years if you’re not going to make sure that you make those years count?

If you’re not living a life that you enjoy, then are you truly living? Your life should be full of happy moments positive thinker. And in case you didn’t know it, happiness is a state of mind, so you can choose to be happy. If you’re not happy now, then all you need to do is decide that you’re not going to take being unhappy anymore. Instead, choose happiness. And the first step to finding happiness is for you to decide to choose positivity over negativity.

You can do this by becoming more aware of how you’re feeling and when you’re feeling it. When you pay attention to your emotions as they happen to you then you can change them if you don’t like the affect that they’re having on you. For instance, if you’re having a conversation with a friend, be alert and aware of how you’re feeling the entire time that you are conversing with this individual. If the conversation makes you feel happy then allow yourself to feel happy, but if the conversation doesn’t make you feel happy then being aware of your feelings while you’re feeling them can allow you to notice that the conversation is making you unhappy. And if the conversation is making you unhappy, then you can do something to change that unhappy feeling. Don’t let the moment pass and then remember hours later that you were unhappy earlier and should have changed your way of thinking when your unhappiness was occurring. Yes you may still remember in the future to not allow that kind of event to make you feel unhappy, but if you learn how to address how you’re feeling in the moment when that unhappiness trigger occurs then you will be better equipped for future moments when something similar happens. Don’t let the unexpected and unwanted things that enter into your life stop you from being happy. We are all going to deal with bad moments. That’s just a part of life, but we don’t have to let these moments stop us from living our life with joy.

And positive thinker, part of living with joy is living a life that gives you a sense of purpose and fulfillment, not emptiness. If you wake up everyday and think to yourself that there has to be more to life than this life that you’re living, then you’re probably right. You’re not supposed to have that feeling. You shouldn’t have that feeling because you were put here on this earth to live your life to the fullest. If you’re not feeling fulfilled then it’s your job to go out into the world and find that something that makes you excited to live. And don’t live somebody else’s version of a fulfilling life. Live your version of what it should be. You’re life is a gift positive thinker and gifts are meant to bring joy to the person that they are given to, so you should enjoy your gift of life for your entire life, just like the oldest man in the world did until the day he died…

Last Tuesday Yasutaro Koide, the oldest man in the world, passed away. He was 112 years old. In August, when he became the world’s oldest man, he was quoted as saying that his secret to living a long life was due to the fact that he didn’t smoke or drink, that he tried to not overdo things, and that he tried to “live with joy.” This last part is the critical part. He chose to live life with joy. He could’ve done all of those other things, but without living with joy, those 112 years of life probably wouldn’t’ve been as fulfilling or special. We can watch what we eat and we can refrain from drinking and not overdoing things, but if we do all that just so that we can live to be over a hundred years old but we fail to live those hundred years with joy then all that other stuff doesn’t really matter.

Remember positive thinker, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

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There’s a saying out there that goes, “love what you do, and you’ll never work a day in your life,” and this quote makes complete sense to me. Merriam Webster defines work as an “activity in which one exerts strength or faculties to do or perform something.” I don’t know about you, but that definition doesn’t seem particularly pleasant to me. For many of us, we go to our job and we toil all day to make money so that we can afford to keep living the lifestyle that we’ve been living, but there are some people out there who wake up everyday and go to the job that they work at because they love doing it. And for these people, the money that they get for coming into their jobs becomes an added bonus instead of the soul incentive for coming into work. For them, their job isn’t work because when your job is your passion it doesn’t seem laborious to you because you love what you do.

It would be great if everybody in the world could wake up everyday and go to a job where they could do what they loved, but that’s not the story for many of us. Some of us have a passion, but for whatever reason, we haven’t been able to make a career out of it. But just because we haven’t been able to do that yet, doesn’t mean that we have to stop pursuing what we love to do. If you haven’t found a way to make money doing what you love, then do what you love in your free time. Set a side a set time each day, even if it’s only for a few minutes, to do something that will make you happy.

If you like to sing then make sure you do it everyday.

If you like to write then make sure you do that everyday.

If you like to paint then take some time out of your day to do that.

If you enjoy making our planet a more sustainable place for us to live then make sure that you go out and do it.

If giving back to your community is your passion then find time to work doing that into your schedule.

Even if you have to get up five days out of the week going to a job that you dread, coming home and being able to do something that you love to do may end up giving you a more positive experience at your job. If everyday after work you plan on coming home and doing something that truly makes you happy, then your work days can end up going by faster because of the anticipation that you have for whatever passion is awaiting you when you get home. And if you’re spending time doing something that you love to do, even if it is just for a little while, then it may start to have a positive impact on your mood in general.

And if you don’t want to initially commit to doing something everyday that makes you happy, then try only doing that thing that you love to do a few times out of the week. Going from zero to one hundred is a lot to ask, so if you don’t think that you can shave out enough time from your week to do something that makes you happy everyday then don’t worry about it. If you start out doing it a couple of days out of the week and you notice a change for the better in yourself then you can increase your activity more and more until you find yourself doing something that you genuinely love to do every single day of the week.

And if you’re still hesitant about trying it out positive thinker then think about this…

If going through your life doing something that you don’t like everyday can put a damper on your mood, even when you’re not actively engaged in the thing that you hate doing, then couldn’t doing something that you love to do everyday start to brighten your mood, even when you’re not actively participating in the activity that makes you happy?

Life is way too short positive thinker to go around doing things that you don’t love to do, so you should make time to go out and do those things you love. We weren’t put on this earth to walk around feeling sad and gloomy all the time; we were put here so that we could make the best of our lives and partake in some happiness along the way. Happiness is within your reach positive thinker, you just have to be bold enough to go out there and grab it.

Wally had one of those days again where he decided to just watch Youtube videos for hours on end. He found this video on Soul Pancake’s page that really touched his heart. The positivity that is in this video radiates through the screen and you just can’t help but smile.

Watching this video helped Wally realize that expressing your gratitude and appreciation for someone in your life not only lifts their spirits, but will lift yours as well.

He wants you all to attempt this exercise. If you’re in a dark place and want a little push towards the light then this exercise should do just that. .

Wally thinks that doing this is going to help improve your happiness and bring positivity into your mindset.

Go out and find the person who inspires you the most or has had a great impact on your life and tell the how much they mean to you. Wally is going to go find his too.

Wally was scrolling down his facebook timeline and found a very touching video for you all! It brought this huge smile across his face and he hopes it will bring a smile to you too. This video helps you to remember that even when you have nothing, you are still capable of happiness. Click here to Enjoy!

As the year comes to a close, we are all thinking about resolutions and what we want to change in the new year. One of ours here at Positivity Works! is to continue to encourage a healthy and optimistic view on life for both our readers and ourselves. In that effort to bring us all into the new year with a smile, we have found a great video supporting wondrously positive ideas about kindness and it’s ability to improve happiness. The music is pretty cool too. So why not take a look? Maybe it can inspire you to spread the kindness, too!

“The Life Vest Inside (click here to learn more about their mission) is a nonprofit organization that “works to cultivate the awareness that individuals can effect real and positive change in the people around them, simply by ‘living kindness:’ by embodying empathy and compassion in our day-to-day lives.” Wowza!!!! We heart this idea and their video. Enjoy!

Disney…this is an oh so welcome addition to your greatness! ❤ The Walt Disney Company put together an awesome “It Gets Better” video in support of The Trevor Project (an anti-bullying campaign mentioned in a previous Positivity Works! blog, click here to view). The video includes interviews with Disney Cast Members (aka employees) who have experienced bullying in their lives as a result of who they are and they even offer great advice about who to contact if you get to that point when you either “want to end it or break free [of the insecurities and trappings of feeling rejected, unwanted, unloved, etc]”.

A while back I was noticing this great trend of advertising that promoted positive lifestyle choices or keeping a positive outlook. Most of that trend began when the world started to recognize economic strife and needed a little encouragement to get out and stimulate the sickly economy (i.e. convince consumers, with a big smile and a hug, to spend their hard-earned money on their products).

Regardless of the fact that the intent was to stimulate spending and not necessarily improve mental health, the sentiment and message was and still is, nice. Because of that, we will continue to point out that type of advertising because they seem responsible and are meeting the needs of their public. They are right. Sometimes we do need a hug and a smile when we are going through hardships, even when that hug and a smile is cloaking a hard sell. And sometimes we just wanna buy stuff! Hey, if it makes us happy… (but be responsible my fellow shop-a-holic sisters and brothers)

So, since I find the idea of what I call “happiness marketing” to be such a grand thing, I always notice it and think to share with all of you positive thinkers. I mean, what if you missed it? 😉

The most recent find has been these new Kaiser Permanente radio commercials. They are just wonderful (as we gush, please note we here at Positivity Works! have no affiliation with any advertisers we mention. We just heart things sometimes). The campaign focuses on well-being and are entitled “Thrive”. Kaiser touts them as supporting the mind, body and spirit. Each one spreads a positive message about mental and physical health in an engaging and educational way.

There is one about the healing and mood boosting powers of music and assigns you a “sonic prescription” for using music as self-care when you’re feeling down. And the play therapist in me absolutely loves the one that tells you to “put the play back in your day” and how play (i.e. doing the things you love) can keep you young and healthy.

There is another about how happy people “tend to be happier” and they give us some statistics about it and great ideas too! My favorite line…”Is it just me, or do happy people seem to get all the breaks?” The ad seems to be making a point about self-fulfilling prophecies (mental health jargon) and the idea that if you believe that you can be happy and that things will go well for you, they will. Love it. (Did that blow your mind? Yes, we know. Big thinking goes on here *insert smug smile*).

To check out the ads mentioned and get exposed to some great resources that benefit your overall health, click on the links below and check out the Kaiser Permanente Thrive website here.